The Unknown Airbender
by Cilla Chez
Summary: Amina, an airbender, lives deep within a Fire Nation forest, for fear someone would see her tattoos. Who should she meet, but a suspicious team (Team Avatar) who loses there way in her hideaway. This takes place between The Headband and The Painted Lady.
1. Meeting Team Avatar

I am an airbender. I am fire nation. I am a friend to the Avatar. I was in love with Prince Zuko. My best friend was Izula. But you've never heard of me. You don't know me from Ozai. Perhaps I should start at the beginning, where or rather when it all began. After all, the where matters little to me anymore. It's all about the when…

I had just turned 15, but I felt nowhere near celebrating. This was the day I buried my grandmother. I placed her next to my mother's 5-year-old burial plot, next to my father's 11-year-old burial plot. I felt the wind blow through the forest and brush the hair out of my eyes. Most people thought the wind of my dark, brooding home was something to fear, but to me, it was the last comfort I would have. Because of my tattoos, I was forced to live a life of solitude in this place. I took off my gloves, untied the string holding my cloak around my neck and let it fall to the ground. My blue tattoos were in startling contrast to my red dress, which I had all but outgrown. My grandmother had continuously cut cloth into strips and sewed them on the bottom. It would be scandalous for anyone to see so much of my legs, that is, if I ever saw a person other than my family. Unlikely. We hadn't seen an outsider in over 5 years.

I heard a growl in the distance. It was unlike anything I had heard before, and I wasn't about to stay there and find out. I grabbed my cloak, wrapped myself tight, and ran back into the house. When I gathered enough courage, I opened the door a crack and witnessed a group of kids walking through the brush. None of them were Fire Nation, although they were sporting the regular garb. There was a young boy with black hair and a scarf around his head. Next to him was a beautiful girl with sapphire eyes who clung to a water pouch as if it was her life. The oldest, a thin and somewhat handsome young man, was carrying a little girl. She appeared unconscious. She also had no shoes. Traveling in my forest without shoes was foolish to say the least - too many poisonous plants and bugs. That's when I saw it. She had the Primantis Bee's stinger in her ankle. Instinct kicked in.

I rushed out of my house, much to their astonishment. (I may have forgotten to mention my cottage is camouflaged very well.)

"How did you- What are you- who- where-" The oldest boy seemed to be having trouble spitting out his words.

"There's no time for this," I replied. "Your friend is going to die unless I help her immediately. We don't have time for questions.

They all looked at each other and nodded in unison. It was uncanny.

"Come with me." I walked back into the house feeling their presence behind me. "Put her on the bench." I went to grab the supplies I needed.

"Why are there shackles on the bench?" This was Sapphire Eyes. She was less pleasant looking with a disapproving expression plastered across her face. I chose to ignore her.

"Is she a bender?"

They looked at each other nervously.

"Well," the young boy hesitated. "I, uh, guess you could say that, uh-"

I let out a frustrated sigh. I didn't have time for this. I put my hand on the young girl's forehead and closed my eyes. I hadn't done something like since I was 10, but my meditations had helped me focus my energies. Then it happened. A surge went through her as I became aware of ever vein, every muscle, and every thing that has never been properly named. When I opened my eyes, I stepped back in shock.

"She's a earth bender." The group stared at me with perhaps equivalent shock. I knew what I would had to do next, and I knew they wouldn't like it. I grabbed the restraints and clasped both arms and legs. When I pulled the chains tight, I felt myself pulled backward.

"What are you doing?" the oldest asked. "You're working with the authorities, aren't you?" He gave me a push. I fell to the ground.

"Why did you do that?" I moaned. My tailbone was killing me. I looked up to see them all staring at me. It took me a few moments to realize my hood had fallen, and my tattoos were showing. There was no taking it back. Before they could react, I created a gush of wind, pushing them into my bedroom and locked the door. I would have to deal with them later. For right now, I needed to help the little earthbender.

I mixed the proper herbs and fed them to the little girl. She kept trying to spit it out, but she was weak from the poison's first stage, and I managed to get her to drink all of it. It was a waiting game now. Plenty of time to think out a plan for the others.

All of my plans involved going in the room eventually, so I decided to have a little chat with my newfound friends. I knocked and yelled, "Back away from the door. If you try to attack me, let me assure you, you will be in an overwhelming amount of pain." I opened the door and felt relieved when saw the entire group on the other side of the room. They remained silent. I had none of it.

"Explain why you are here or I _will_ make you talk."

"Listen." Sapphire Eyes was back. "We're sorry we attacked you. After all, you were trying to save Toph."

"Toph?"

"Our friend. Sokka?"

The oldest, now named Sokka, was cowering in the corner. Sapphire Eyes pushed him in front of me. His face was red, a shade darker than my clothing.

"I'm sorry I attacked you," he finally spat out. "I can be a little paranoid sometimes... But I mean, can you blame us? We are in the Fire Nation."

"Sokka!" his sister cut in. I could see the resemblance up close.

Sokka cleared his voice. "Right. I'm truly sorry for pushing you." He looked at his sister who smiled in approval.

"I'm Katara." Katara extended her hand. I took it. "And this is Aang." Aang was sitting in the corner, his knees to his chest and his head down. "He's not feeling well right now."

"Has he been in contact with anything in the forest?" I asked.

"No," Katara shook her head. "We were careful to avoid everything after Toph was stung."

"I better take a look." I kneeled next to Aang. "I'll need to remove his headband in order to read him." Aang shook his head. "Come on—Aang, is it? Let me see." Aang looked up. There was something familiar in his eyes; something I had seen in my mother, in my grandmother. I didn't need to read him. It was too clear to miss. "It's not possible," I heard myself whisper. He let me slowly lift his headband off his head. There as clear as ever was the blue arrow I had only seen in my reflection. The tears began to flow from both of our eyes as I pulled the only kin I had left into my arms. There was a burst of light as we held each other. Neither of us acknowledged it, because it couldn't be more surprising than this wonderful gift we had found.

Toph was starting to toss around. I knew the second phase had begun.

"You need to understand. In the next day, she will not be as you've known her. She will be delusional and aggressive."

"Well, delusional," Sokka muttered. We all just stared at him. "What? Oh, come on. Toph isn't what you'd call calm."

"Anyway," I continued. "The restraints are necessary for benders. This way she doesn't kill us or injure herself. They're thick. They should hold."

"What if she could bend metal?" Katara asked.

"Please tell me this is simply a hypothetical question." It was not. The chains stared shaking. "We need to get out of here now."

"What about Toph?" Aang stood firmly next to the bench. "We can't leave her like this."

"The medicine will take effect in the next day and then she'll be fine, but we are putting ourselves in unnecessary risk by staying here."

"You said she could be a harm to herself. We need to be able to take care of her."

"I am not going to sit here and argue with you. We need-"

I felt a piece of stone impact my body. Is it ironic that I'm an airbender and I couldn't find a lung full? I didn't have time to recover as another stone came at my head. I dropped to the ground and gave a gush of air to propel me free of the volley.

"Run!" I shouted. Katara and Sokka ran for cover, but Aang dodged Toph's throws. Grandma was right. The monks were fools when it came to their ideals. "Aang! What are you doing?"

"We need to get her restrained! We can't let her be like this!" he yelled back. A wall, my wall to be more specific, came rushing at Aang. I tackled him to safety, but only a moment before his body had been crushed.

"Please, Aang. We can't do anything for her. As long as she's in contact with anything she'll be able to-" That's when it hit me. We needed her airborne. "I have an idea." We flew apart as a rock was launched between us. "Make an air current circling her right and I'll do one on her left. "

Aang nodded. Our arms became the wind surrounding Toph lifting her higher and higher into the air. Katara and Sokka came running back.

"What are you doing?" Katara yelled over the wind.

"Without a solid stance, Toph can't bend!" Sokka replied for us. "She won't be able to attack us!"

It was hours before Toph reached the third stage: the deep sleep. Aang and I gently laid Toph back on the earth. We followed her, crumbling to the ground out of exhaustion.

The next thing I remembered was waking up in my room or what was left of it. The house was torn to ruins.

"That was a great plan." I looked up to see Sokka by the fire. "I consider myself the plan guy, but-" He shrugged. "-I suppose there's nothing wrong with sharing the lime light on occasion."

Next to me was Aang, and next to him was Toph. They were both weak but awake. Katara walked in with a piece of fruit and handed it to me.

"Here. After yesterday, you'll need more than this, but we can buy something on our way."

"On our way?" They weren't making any sense.

"Yes." Katara was patient with me. "We were hoping you would come with us. I know Aang would like having another airbender with us, and you did come through for us."

"I suppose there's nothing else for me here." I looked around again. Almost everything was destroyed, and my family was in the ground outside the window.

"There is one thing though." This was the first time I had heard Toph speak. Her voice was pleasant to listen to. My eyes focused on her as I saw what I knew from my reading; she was blind. "What's your name?"

I smiled embarrassed. Everyone I had known I knew for years. There was no reason to introduce myself. I suppose something would have to change with me leaving and all.

"Amina."

"Nice to meet you, Amina," Katara smiled. "Welcome to the group."

"Or as I like to call it Team Avatar!" Sokka exclaimed.

I looked at Sokka. "You're the Avatar?"


	2. Freezing Air

I learned quickly that Sokka was not the Avatar. He wasn't even a bender. Don't get me wrong. My father wasn't a bender, and I loved him more than anyone, but the others thought this to warrant constant jokes. I was getting tired of it… so was Sokka.

"No, I get it," Toph laughed. "The headband tail and ponytail confused me at first too."

Sokka let out a sound which was somewhere between a growl and a sigh. "If you don't mind keeping an eye out for a town where we can land and get supplies."

"I'll get right on that… Avatar Sokka," Toph smiled and leaned back against Appa's saddle. "If you get low enough, you can drag my feet against the ground. That'll get a real good picture for you."

"Why is it so hard to remember you can't see?" Sokka yelled to the open air.

"There!" Katara pointed to a town below. I recognized it, but couldn't quite remember why.

"I don't know, guys," I commented. "Maybe we should look for another town."

"But I'm so hungry," Aang whined. "I could almost be tempted to eat meat."

"We do have seal jerky left from Dad." Katara lifted the jerky to Aang's face. Aang smelled it and jolted back.

"I said almost tempted," he recoiled.

"Aang's right," Toph interjected. "He needs to keep up his strength. The invasion is coming up, and he needs to be in peak condition."

"Listen, guys," Sokka said. "We don't know the Fire Nation like Amina. Maybe we should listen to her."

"Oh, come on," Aang pleaded, then yielded a smile. "The Avatar isn't afraid of anything, right Sokka?" Sokka pulled his head down even with his shoulders and released a sigh.

"Fine," he muttered. He directed the gigantic mass of a creature into the brush surrounding the village. I wasn't sure if the landing was rough because he was angry or he wasn't the most skilled driver.

We walked into the main square of the town, before we encountered anyone. It was eerie to say the least.

"Where is everyone?" Katara asked what we were all thinking.

It was then I remembered where we were. Although, I had only seen it on my Grandmother's map, the tales she told me were flying through my mind with great speed.

"We need to leave now," I whispered.

"Too late," Toph replied.

Before we could even take a step back, we were surrounded by a group of soldiers, which reached the hundreds.

"Well, well, what have we here," the general walked forward from the line. "And here I thought no one would ever find our base. We were prepared for every kind of attack, but here you are. Five brats who have a knack for getting into trouble."

"Five?" Aang asked.

"How quickly we forget," I spat.

"Heh heh," Aang laughed nervously with a shrug.

"Listen," Sokka eased into his most reasonable tone. "We just lost our way. We will get out of your hair right now." He tried to take a step back only to lightly feel the tip of a spear on his back. "DIRECTIONS!" His tone had fallen to slight panic. "Thank you for the reminder," he saluted the soldier behind him. "Can you give us directions to the nearest village?"

The general chuckled. "You're not going anywhere."

We huddled close to each other back to back.

"Looks like we're fighting our way out of this one," Toph said.

"But we can't," Katara whispered. "We'll give ourselves away. Aang's identity is too important to compromise."

"And having us taken prisoner is a better idea?" Toph hissed.

I knew what I had to do. "You don't want to mess with the Sorceress of the Forest," I stated loudly.

"What are you doing?" Katara whispered again.

"Trust me." I turned my attention back to the general. "I'm warning you. Don't test me."

"Thank you for the warning-" the general smiled.

"Get ready to hit the ground," I whispered back to the crew.

"-But I think I'll take my chances. Men, attack!"

"Now!' I yelled. I sensed the others were no longer standing, and I took action. I could see the air as an entity flowing throughout the village. I felt the power rise into my chest, and right at the moment the soldiers would have met me, I shot my hands into the atmosphere.

"Where did they go?" I heard Toph behind me. I realized she couldn't sense what had happened. The others stood in bewilderment as I held my position. Ever soldier was hovering in the air as if there was no longer anything holding them to the earth. I could feel them breathing the air, though some of them didn't even dare to do that.

"What did you do?" Aang asked. I let my arms fall, though I kept the men in the air. I slowly walked to the general who had so boldly mocked me, flipped him upside down and brought his face to mine.

"I warned you," I smiled the most malicious smile I could muster. I wasn't going to hurt him, but he didn't need to know that.

"Please," he shook out of fear. "I have children."

"So they matter more than us brats?" I let him fall an inch. "I have little time for you, my friend, so let me be clear. We are walking out of here and none of you are going to stop us. If you do you will be in a world of hurt you are not currently privy to. Do I make my self clear?"

The general nodded.

"No, I want your word." I knelt as I dropped him within a foot of the ground. "Are we clear?"

"Yes!" he yelled. "Yes, you have my word!"

"Guys, start walking." They didn't move. "Start walking."

They made their way to the woods, and once I figured they were at a safe distance, I followed. As I walked, I let the soldiers fall one by one around me. I kept in mind none of their falls killed them, but didn't concern myself with anything else.

"Appa," Sokka said. "Yip, yip."

"Amina, what was that?" Katara was actually concerned about me. How strange.

"It was airbending." I said simply.

"But there wasn't any wind," Toph stated.

"Well, no," I admitted. "I learned the technique from my grandmother. It's waterbending if you were bending air." They all stared at me like I was crazy.

"I don't understand," Katara continued to look concerned. "How can you waterbend air?"

"It's like this," I explained. "The ocean is made up of water, right? And you can bend parts of the ocean. Except in this case, the ocean is sky, made up of air instead of water. It's similar to when you freeze water into ice, but instead you create a almost solid layer of air."

"But how is that possible?" Katara asked.

"The real question is: when can you teach me?" Aang interrupted.

"Excuse me." I did not believe that was the real question.

"I have never seen anything like that. And I lived with the monks almost my entire life."

"Aren't you 12?" I asked.

His face fell for a moment, but he quickly regained his momentum. "Well, if you think about I was born 112 years ago so in reality-"

"You're 12," I repeated. "This is highly advanced stuff and to be perfectly honest, I don't think I'd teach anyone this, let alone a 12 year old.

"12 years or not, I'm still the Avatar and I have to fight the Firelord. So-"

"So you really need to hone the skills you already have, not learn new ones," I finished.

"Please, Amina. I really-"

"Aang, if she thinks it's a bad idea to teach you," Sokka interjected. "Then she probably has a good reason."

Aang let out a huff and sat in the corner of Appa's saddle. There was no cheering him up, so I walked over to Sokka.

"Thanks," I said.

Sokka gave me a smile. "You're welcome. You seem like a smart gal. I'm sure you have your reasons."

It was then Appa started to lose altitude and quickly.

"What's going on?" Katara yelled.

"I don't know," Aang replied.

I was glad their dialogue was so helpful to the situation. The trees were getting closer, and everyone's screams confirmed no one else had a plan. I let go of the saddle, jumped a foot above the flying bison, and bent the air around below him creating a platform. It was enough to slow him down, but I could tell he was hurt when we impacted the ground.

Aang jumped out of the saddle and looked into the bison's eyes. "Appa." The bison let out a moan and closed its eyes. I surveyed the side of Appa and found what I was looking for, a Spider Ladybug in his fur.

"He'll be fine," I told the others. "This bug's venom only puts its victims to sleep. Appa will be fine in a few days."

"Do you think we're safe?" Katara asked.

"Yeah," Sokka answered. "We put a significant amount of distance between us and them. Thanks to Amina."

I was hoping that we would be able to forego the rest of this conversation, but their eager eyes were calling for answers. Though, Aang's eyes might have been categorized as ecstatic.

"So, since Appa's sick and we're stranded here for a while-" he jumped so that his face was 3 inches from my face. "You can teach me to do whatever you did back there."

I grabbed his head as if it was a reflex. "Not on your life." I gave him a push back and jumped back into the saddle to unpack camp.

"Why not?" he called from a sitting position. "I mean, I'm going up against the Fire lord soon and I have to be prepared."

"You already said that, remember? You should focus on the training you've already had. Perfecting those skills is more important."

"But-"

"Aang," Sokka interjected. "Leave her alone. She said no."

"I don't know, Sokka." Toph had now joined the conversation. "From the sound of it, that kind of bending could be exactly what Aang needs to stop the Firelord."

"Listen, I want to stop the Firelord just as much as any of you," Sokka retorted. "But I think we need to trust-"

"But, Sokka," Katara said. "I agree with Toph. And we are his teachers-"

"Oh," Sokka was mad now. "So because I'm not a bender, I should just keep my mouth shut about what I think."

"That's not what we're saying," Katara said wounded.

"Besides, like that could happen," Toph muttered.

"Fine!" Sokka was fit to be tied. "Do whatever you want! I'll be getting firewood, if anyone cares what the lowly non-bender is doing!" Without another word, Sokka walked into the woods.

"So it's settled," Katara sighed.

"Excuse me," I chimed in. "Nothing is settled. I am not teaching Aang this. It's extremely dangerous and tricky work."

"Amina, listen to reason," Katara tried.

"Yeah," Aang smiled. "After all I am the Avatar. If anyone can handle this-"

"No!" I yelled. "I am not teaching this to you! And if any of you cared about Aang at all, you wouldn't be asking me too! Sokka's right, and you should follow his lead."

I could see the hurt in Aang's eyes, but I didn't care. This was for his own good. Why couldn't he see that? I marched into the woods in the same direction as Sokka.

"Sokka!" I called. "Sokka!"

"Over here." It was the most downtrodden I had ever heard him. I found him sitting on a boulder, tossing rocks into a river. He wiped his eyes, but even from this distance I could tell his eyes were building with tears.

"Sokka," I sat next to him and handed him a handful of smooth stones.

"I just wish Suki was here."

"Suki?"

"Yeah." He skipped a stone three times. Impressive. "She was, I mean, she is… we're kind of a thing." The sigh he let out fell heavy on my soul. I wish I had words to say, but my ability to read others was difficult. After all, I had only left home a week ago. "We met in her village. She kidnapped us," he laughed to himself. "I didn't want to admit I had been beaten by a girl. I was the biggest bear pig to her, but then she trained me. She's one of the most incredible warriors I've ever met… And she sees the value of people for who they are- beyond bending."

I nodded and tried skipping a rock. It was harder than it looked. "Where is she now?"

"I-" his voice quivered. "I don't know. We think the Fire Nation took her, but I don't know when or how."

"I'm sorry."

"She's out there somewhere," his voice became steady. "And as soon as all this is over, I will tear this world apart looking for her."

"She's a lucky girl," I smiled. "You're a great guy, Sokka. Funny. Intelligent. A little quirky, but only in a good way."

He gave a little smile. "You remind me a lot of her. You care about people, even though you pretend you don't."

I gave a small chuckle. "I pretend I don't like people, huh?" We laughed together. It wasn't that funny, but we both need to laugh. "Hey," I nudged him gently. You know the others do see your value, right? They love you. And in all those stories you guys tell, sure, you sometimes sound goofy, but you also carry your weight. You are fully a part of-" I threw my hands out in my best Sokka impression. "Team Avatar!" Sokka smiled. "And once this is all over, I'll help you find your Suki."

"Thanks, Ami," Sokka nudged me back. I couldn't breathe. What did he call me? "Are you OK?"

"I'm fine," I managed. "Just please don't call me that."

Sokka and I made our way back to camp after gathering a good amount of wood. Was this what having a friend felt like? I had never had one before, but it was nice.

"Where were you two?" Katara nagged with her hands on her hips. "It's almost dark. We've been going out of our minds worrying about you."

"Correction," Toph piped up. "YOU have been going out of your mind worrying."

"Relax, sis," Sokka answered. "We've been gathering wood like we said. Ready to make a fire."

That night everyone put their differences aside and shared in a dinner of berries and seal jerky. They were displeased, but the jerky was like nothing I ever tasted and ever bite was a delight.

"You're eating meat?" Aang asked.

"Yes," I said between mouthfuls.

"But you're an airbender."

"True, but my grandmother left the nomads for a reason. She didn't agree with their teaching. Also, my father was Fire Nation. For all intents and purposes, this is my home."

Everyone stared at me. They liked to do that a couple times a day.

"You're Fire Nation?" Toph whispered.

"Yes," I repeated myself. "My father's side goes all the way back to the 4th Firelord." I looked around the circle. "This shouldn't be a surprise. You found me in the Fire Nation."

"But you're helping us," Katara stated.

I looked at all of them. Why did they all seem so small-minded at times? "Just because the Fire Lord is evil, doesn't mean the rest of us are. I knew many good people before my grandmother secluded us from the rest of the world. There are evil people and good people in each nation. Evil is not sectioned off to my people." I saw guilt fall over their faces, but a hint of anger lingered within me. "I'm off to bed."

This day needed to end and it did.

The next morning was better until Aang woke me up.

"You know, it's important that the traditions of our people survive," he began. "That skill would have better chance of surviving if two airbenders knew it."

"No," I stated bluntly. "I intend for it to die with me. Besides, it wasn't a tradition the nomads had. My grandmother made this technique."

"But if I could use that on the Fire Lord—AH!"

I grabbed his brown vest and lifted him to eye level. "Let me be more clear than I have ever been before. You are to never try this technique on a human being."

"What about on a rock or something?"

"What's going on here?" Katara asked from the saddle.

"No," I ignored her. "That will eventually lead to the temptation to use it on a living being."

Aang shook free from my grip. "But look." He lifted his hand and a rock shook a little bit. "If you give me some direction, I can-"

"Fine," I grabbed his collar and dragged him to the center of the area.

"What are you doing?" Katara slid to the ground off Appa.

"What does it look like? I'm teaching my pupil how to bend."

Aang looked up at me, unsure of himself. "So should I try on those rocks over there or-"

"No, Avatar. You're so eager to learn this craft. We'll start on a live subject." I pictured the air around Momo, created an invisible fist, and brought him to my hand. "We'll start here." I could tell Aang was scared. So was I.

"Go ahead. Try."

Aang hesitated, but slowly lifted his hand. It was right about now Sokka and Toph joined Katara's concern.

"But keep in mind," I continued. "Not to crush the lemur's body." I could see the beads of sweat on Aang's face.

"Couldn't we start on something easier?" Aang pleaded.

"Aren't you the Avatar? I thought you were an 112 year old protégé."

"Amina." Toph rarely sounded anything but confident. This was one of those occasions.

"And don't forget," I continued. "You have to allow room for Momo to breath and you can't bend air in his lungs and you have to make sure you don't make any mistakes, because if you do it will cost you a lemur."

"It's like bending water, right?" Aang voice shuttered.

"The only difference being water can naturally be a solid. Air is meant to flow and only flow. It will fight you every second." Aang's arms started shaking. "Go ahead. Do it. You want to learn this? You'll have to kill a few hundred animals. By the way, did you know the first boy my grandmother brought to me couldn't speak? I froze air in his throat. Can't speak after damage like that."

Aang's hands shook recklessly until brought his hands to his head and fell to his knees. I knew it was over and rewarded myself with a sigh.

"What is wrong with you?" Katara accused.

All three of them had horror glued onto their faces. Even though I knew I did what was necessary, I did not want this.

We packed the saddle in awkward silence, interrupted only by Katara's disapproving huffs.

"I'm going to wash my face in the river," I finally said.

"Don't hurry back," Katara called after me.

I made my way to the river and let the water wash away my urge to cry. I did what was necessary. That's all that mattered.

"Hey." I turned around and saw Aang nervously approach me.

"Hey." We sat in silence for a few minutes. Neither of us knew where to begin.

"Was that true?" Aang finally said. "What you said about that boy?" I wanted to speak, but I couldn't without crying. The tears welled up and I couldn't hold them back anymore.

"Yes." I forced my body to breathe normally in order to fight the emotion coming forth. "He was a friend of mine in the village. My grandmother thought I would learn quicker, that I would avoid making mistakes if I practiced on someone I cared about. But she was wrong."

"I can see why you did what you did. I'm sorry. I had no idea."

"Well, I know that." I turned away from Aang and watched the water dance. "All of you assume you know me, like all airbenders are the same. I have lived a different life. I had a different family, a different country, a different culture. Try getting to know me. Don't act like you already do."

"Agreed!" Both Aang and I were surprised by Sokka's exclamation, as all three of the others gathered around us.

"Were you guys there the whole time?" I asked.

"Yeah," Sokka smiled. "We kind of know each other's business. You'll get used to it now that you're a part of—" Sokka threw out his arms. "Team Avatar!"

I smiled despite myself.

"Yeah," Toph said. "You're part of the group now. You'll never have privacy again."

"But we want you to know," Katara crept guiltily to the front. "We want to get to know you. We consider you a friend."

"Thank you," I grinned. "That means a lot."

Sokka pulled all of us into a hug. "That's sweet." He then proceeded to drop us all. "OK! We have a tight schedule to keep to! We have not more time for touchy-feely stuff until sometime next week!"


End file.
